UN launches £293m appeal to ease flood victims' suffering

Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, in one of his first interviews since leaving Downing Street, led calls yesterday to back the relief effort which saw four plane loads of aid leave Britain.

Donations from the British public have topped 9.5m but are flowing in at a slower than rate than previous such appeals.

Mr Brown said there was no suggestion of a "compassion or giving fatigue" and praised the "outpouring of compassion".

The UN says 14 million people had been affected by the disaster, with 1,200 dead and at least 288,000 homes damaged or destroyed. It said up to seven million people needed immediate humanitarian assistance, including food, clean water, shelter and medical care.

International development secretary Andrew Mitchell said the disaster was on a "huge scale". The four planes, chartered by Britain's Department for International Development, will deliver 1,000 tents, more than 9,000 shelter kits, 24,000 water containers and nearly 50,000 blankets.

The British government has now earmarked up to 31.3m for the relief and recovery effort.

Mr Mitchell said: "This is a disaster on a huge scale covering an area the size of England. Nearly seven million people are critically affected. That is why today I'm announcing further help for the people of Pakistan.

"The UK's contribution to the emergency relief effort so far means we are providing vital life saving assistance for around 1.5 million people."

He praised the response of the British public to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) appeal and said it showed "characteristic generosity and compassion".

"I urge other countries to come forward to help the Pakistani people in their hour of need."

Mr Brown said it was vital to send more cash to the crisis-hit country. "I think there's not a compassion or giving fatigue. I think there's an outpouring of compassion in this country.

"I think we are seeing the number of people wanting to do something rising." Mr Brown, who said he was adapting to life outside Number 10 and enjoying spending more time with his family, added: "The worst position to be in is for there to be sorrow without hope and we can give people hope by us helping and doing something as individuals, matched by the Government, of course, and other governments.

"We can give people the hope that they can come through what is now seen as the worst disaster in Pakistan and floods for 80 years."

Floodwaters have caused huge destruction in Pakistan's volatile north-west region over the past three weeks, also deluging villages and some urban centres in Punjab, the richest and most populous province.

In a typical year, the country gets an average 5.4 inches of rainfall during the monsoon season. This year it had already received 6.3 inches, said Muhammad Hanif, head of the National Weather Forecasting Centre in Islamabad.

n To make a donation to the DEC Pakistan appeal, call the 24-hour hotline on 0370 60 60 900, visit http://www.dec.org.uk or donate over the counter at any post office or high street bank, or send a cheque made payable to DEC Pakistan Floods Appeal to PO Box 999, London, EC3A 3AA.

People can also donate 5 by texting the word GIVE to 70707.

1,100 die in china as hopes fade for 600

The death toll from China's floods has risen to more than 1,100, with another 600 people still missing.

Entire communities in Gansu province's Zhouqu district were swallowed up when the debris-choked Bailong River burst its banks on Sunday, tearing buildings from their foundations. Heavy rains continued to lash the area yesterday and the hopes of finding more survivors were fading. China's meteorological centre warned there was a "relatively large" chance of more landslides as the rain was expected to grow heavier,

with over 3 inches forecast for Friday.

While torrential rains were the direct cause or the landslides, tree cutting that left the dry hills exposed and the weakening of cliff

faces by a massive 2008 earthquake were seen as contributing factors.